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The tornadoes tore off roofs and downed trees and power lines throughout the affected areas.

Charlotte Walters, 61, and her daughter Heather Walters, 30, were moving buckets and bowls around inside their house trying to catch water pouring through holes in the roof.

The women were at home along with Charlotte's husband on Sunday when a relative called and said a tornado was headed their way.

"It came through like a freight train. I always heard it sounded like a train. It sounded like Katrina," said Mrs Walters, who lives in a neighborhood also hit by the 2005 hurricane that devastated the Gulf Coast.

Besides holes in the roof of her one-story wood frame house, a falling tree had damaged the side and another one collapsed on her carport, denting and breaking windows in three cars there.

"I'm blessed. At least I don't have one of those in my house," Mrs Walters said, pointing to a tree that had fallen onto a neighbor's house next door.

Daylight offered emergency management officials the chance to get a better handle on the damage that stretched across several counties. It was raining at first light Monday and people began trying to salvage what they could in one damaged neighborhood. Some people walked around fallen trees, power lines, smashed cars and other debris to carry belongings away.

Mississippi Emergency Management Agency spokesman Greg Flynn said it appears a single tornado caused the damage in three counties. Hundreds of homes were damaged.

Mr Flynn said the sheer scope of the damage was slowing officials' assessment.

"The problem is, it was so strong that there's so much debris that there's a lot of areas they haven't been able to get to yet," he said.